甜瓜视频app

By Marlon W. Morgan

Jack Eaddy Jr. is all about pushing the envelope. Pushing the envelope is one reason 甜瓜视频app鈥檚 Pride of the Mountains Marching Band has become one of the most renowned collegiate bands in the country.

And it鈥檚 one of many reasons George Brown, dean of the David Orr Belcher College of Fine and Performing Arts, chose Eaddy to become the university鈥檚 next director of athletic bands. Eaddy will begin his new role Tuesday, May 4.

鈥淚 think that Jack is going to do a tremendous job, not only keeping the important traditions and the quality of the Pride alive, but also taking it to the next level,鈥� Brown said.

Eaddy comes to WCU after serving as the assistant director of bands at McNeese State University and the University of South Carolina. Prior to that, he was a graduate teaching assistant at the University of Georgia and the University of North Texas, and the director of bands at Oak Ridge High School and Westridge Middle School, both in Orlando, Florida.

Eaddy replaces David Starnes, who left last August to take a position at Kennesaw Mountain High School in Georgia.

鈥淭o be a part of this program is unreal,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淭he Pride has a rich tradition of excellence and a long-lasting legacy. I have some big shoes to fill, but I鈥檓 looking forward to upholding the legacy that Bob Buckner and David Starnes have created for the program. I鈥檓 hyped.鈥�

He鈥檚 hyped because this is a role Eaddy feels he has spent a lifetime preparing for. You also could say it鈥檚 in his blood. His father, Jack A. Eaddy Sr., was a high school band director in Kingstree, South Carolina. Although he died when Eaddy Jr. was 10, he still remembers the passion his dad had for teaching.

鈥淗e truly loved his students,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淗e had fun being a director. A lot of times, we have long hours and we have a lot of expectations. We鈥檙e criticized anytime we鈥檙e in public. But he just had fun with his students. He truly treated them like they were the stars of the show.鈥�

Another influence on Eaddy鈥檚 musical career was his high school band director, Dwight McMillan. Eaddy, who plays the saxophone, attended Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School in Orangeburg, South Carolina, an all-black school. He characterized the school as an anomaly. Its band performed corps style, which Eaddy said was different than most traditional all-black marching bands.

鈥淲e were a competitive band program,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥�(McMillan) pushed us beyond our limits. We were able to do some amazing things. It was always great to see all these black kids come off the bus and he would make us dress up. Everyone would look at us like, 鈥楢re y鈥檃ll in the right place?鈥� We鈥檇 perform and do well beyond expectations.鈥�

Later, when Eaddy was the band director at Oak Ridge High School, his band was invited as the guest Honor Band to perform at South Carolina State University. McMillan attended the performance.

鈥淲e prepared this really engaging, tough program,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淚n high school, in order to get our uniform, we had to stand up in front of the band and play this march called 鈥楻olling Thunder.鈥� It has a lot of notes, and it鈥檚 very fast. This is one example of the level of excellence he expected from his students. It was amazing for me to perform 鈥楻olling Thunder鈥� with him in the front row.鈥�

Teaching at Oak Ridge, a Title I school, meaning that at least 40 percent of the enrolled students are from low-income families, was Eaddy鈥檚 biggest accomplishment to date, he said. He began with a band program that had 13 students, most of whom didn鈥檛 have much experience.

鈥淲e built it into a program that received state superior ratings, and became a well-known band in Florida,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淚 was proud that all of those students graduated with scholarships. It was good to see the band grow from basically nothing into a well-respected program. People didn鈥檛 expect much of them, let alone for them to play at a high level.鈥�

After receiving his master鈥檚 degree from Georgia and his doctorate from North Texas, Eaddy became an assistant director of athletic bands at South Carolina, and then the assistant director of bands at McNeese State, an opportunity he couldn鈥檛 refuse.

That also allowed him to experience a Cajun culture that he thoroughly enjoyed.

鈥淚t鈥檚 different, but in a good way,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淚t was cool to learn about it and get engrossed in it,鈥� he said. 鈥淢cNeese is a school in southwest Louisiana, 20 minutes from Texas. It鈥檚 one of Louisiana鈥檚 best-kept secrets and the band plays unbelievably. They do some truly, truly great things. It was a wonderful experience there.鈥�

Eaddy looks forward to combining the good from all of those experiences and bringing them to Cullowhee, along with his wife LaShonda, and daughters Jillian (12) and Jordyn (8).

鈥淔or my daughters, this puts them back on the East coast,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e very, very close to their grandmas and cousins. They鈥檙e definitely excited. They鈥檙e ready to come back to the football games.鈥�

"I鈥檓 ready for the challenge. It鈥檚 almost like jumping on a train that鈥檚 already running. You just want to make sure you come in and you don鈥檛 derail the train. I鈥檓 very excited.鈥�

Eaddy said he is looking forward to building lasting relationships with the students. In addition to overseeing the Pride of the Mountains, Eaddy will conduct WCU鈥檚 Symphonic Band, while also working with Margaret Underwood, WCU director of bands and associate professor of music. He will teach various courses, such as marching band techniques, as well as supervising student teachers, Brown said.

Eaddy also recognized the job Jon Henson, who served as interim director of athletic bands after Starnes鈥� departure, and Matt Henley, assistant director, for their tireless work and efforts for the Pride, as well as keeping the band members performing during a year in which COVID-19 sidelined them for a year.

With the university planning to resume all academic, social and extracurricular activities this fall, Eaddy knows his band members are thrilled about getting back into E.J. Whitmire Stadium and the Ramsey Regional Activity Center.

鈥淔or every band in the country, it鈥檚 going to be a learning curve because many bands will basically have two sets of freshmen classes,鈥� Eaddy said. 鈥淵ou have those sophomores who have been around and they know certain aspects of the band experience, but they may not know how to get from the band room to the stands. They may not know how to play certain things. It鈥檚 going to be fun getting them, and myself, caught up. I know students are hungry and ready to perform.

鈥淚 have big shoes to fill, but somebody has to do it. I tell my wife all the time, 鈥業鈥檓 ready for the challenge.鈥� It鈥檚 almost like jumping on a train that鈥檚 already running. You just want to make sure you come in and you don鈥檛 derail the train. I鈥檓 very excited.鈥�